September 30, 2014

OMG - I am SO in love with M. Leighton's Pretty series! Sig captured my interest back in the first book, and now he gets to take center stage. Read on for an excerpt from All Things Pretty, and then enter the giveaway! Happy book birthday, M. Leighton!

All Things Pretty (Pretty #3), by M. Leighton
Published September 29, 2014Publisher: self-publishedGenre: newadult contemporary romanceTo Buy:Amazon(Synopsis) Pretending to be
something they’re not, afraid to trust anyone completely, destined to
tear each other apart– this is the story of unlikely love and unbearable
consequences.

Sig Locke is a cop. He was raised by a cop and
all his brothers are cops. He bleeds blue, believes in right and wrong,
and sees in black and white, never in shades of gray.

But that was before he met Tommi.

Tommi,
with her long legs and bright green eyes, she captured Sig’s interest
from the moment he saw her. Even after he discovered who she was–the
girlfriend of a drug dealer, the beauty behind a criminal–he still found
her utterly irresistible. What Sig doesn’t know, however, is that she
has a secret even a cop can’t uncover.

Tommi Lawrence hasn’t
had an easy life, and it only got more complicated the day she met Sig.
She learned long ago that she can’t trust anyone. Her gut tells her
that Sig is no exception, her heart tells her that he is. But that was
before she found out his real identity.

Can love be forged in a fire of lies? Or will the truth destroy them both?

Excerpt

“I did. Thank you. This was so good for him.”“And you.”“And me,” she concedes.“You can be the real you around me anytime. I won’t tell a soul.”“So you prefer this?”“Oh, hell yeah! I don’t need glamorous. Or proper.”“I’m not proper.”“You forget that I heard your…expressiveness that day on the side of the road. And it didn’t consist of ‘darn’ or ‘golly gee’. But I haven’t heard anything like that come out of your mouth since then.”“Ladies aren’t supposed to talk that way, according to Lance.”“I don’t want a lady. I want a woman. One who knows her own mind. One who wears what she’s comfortable in, one who says what she’s thinking.” I take a step closer. I can’t help myself. Her scent draws me in. Even covered in mud, she smells like sexy sunshine. “I want the woman who kisses like she’s on fire and makes me feel like I’m the only one who can put her out.”“Sig,” she begins.I break in to cut her off. I know her objections. And I know how much I don’t want to hear them. “I’m just being honest. I’m not even touching you.”Her eyes are glued to mine, a damn near irresistible gravity pulling us together. “It’s not like you can anyway. I mean, we’re in public. With my little brother. What could you possibly touch?”I reach down and smear my hand in mud. With her eyes locked on mine, I reach between us and flatten my palm on her chest, right over her heart. “This. I’d touch this.”

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author, M. Leighton, is a native of Ohio. She relocated to the warmer climates of the South, where she can be near the water all summer and miss the snow all winter. Possessed of an overactive imagination from early in her childhood, M. Leighton finally found an acceptable outlet for her fantastical visions: literary fiction. Having written over a dozen novels, these days M. Leighton enjoys letting her mind wander to more romantic settings with sexy Southern guys, much like the one she married and the ones you'll find in her latest books. When her thoughts aren't roaming in that direction, she'll be riding horses, swimming in ponds and experiencing life on a ranch, all without leaving the cozy comfort of her office.

A note from M. Leighton: I love coffee and chocolate, even more so when they are combined. I'm convinced that one day they could be the basis for world peace. I also love the color red and am seriously considering dying my hair.

September 29, 2014

The New Adult genre - their bad boys and big problems and epic loves
make them engrossing tales that are so easy to lose yourself in. What's
not to love about that? And, now, thanks to the cool chicks at Bewitched Bookworms, we can show these books the love they deserve in a weekly feature - New Adult Mondays.

(From Goodreads) A college baseball star
isn’t supposed to have skeletons in his closet. But Daniel Quinn is
hiding a past so dark, he refuses to let anyone get close. Except
there’s something about Ella Abrams that goes beyond
attraction—something that makes him want to open up.

Ella has
suffered enough heartache to fill one of her psychology textbooks, but
she keeps that part of herself hidden behind a bubbly exterior. Until
she receives an anonymous call while working a suicide help line and the
voice on the other end touches something inside of her that she can’t
ignore.

Soon Ella and Quinn’s physical connection heats up, even
as their revealing hotline talks intensify. But by the time Ella
realizes that her seductive jock and her sensitive caller are the same
guy, it might be too late to save him—or to stop herself from falling
too far .

The second book in Christina Lee's outstanding new adult Between Breaths series, Before You Break, will be out in paperback format on October 7, 2014. If you haven't had the chance to pick it up when it was only out in digital format, your chance is coming up again, and I would definitely not pass it up.

Quinn is a shell of who he once was, especially since, for the past few years, he's been living someone else's life out of a sense of guilt and self-loathing. Ella is the first person who makes him feel more like himself, but she's dating someone else. One night, in his despair, Quinn calls the suicide prevention hotline and talks to Gabby, not realizing it's Ella. Ella as well doesn't realize he's Quinn, and as Gabby starts helping assuage his guilt, Ella starts showing him how to live his own life again.

I really love books that feature cases of mistaken identity (Easy by Tammara Webber, anyone??). It feels like you hold your breath through the whole book, waiting for that moment when both parties' lightbulbs go on and they realize who the other person is. You just KNOW that moment will be there somewhere, and it seems like all events and moments lead up to that one. And, then all you can do is grab the popcorn and sit back and see what happens.

But, I think the best part about those types of books is that the reader gets to see both sides of these people up front - the public side and the private side. Before You Break was like that. In person, Quinn was a star baseball player, a loyal member of a campus fraternity and the loving son of a politician. Ella was sweet and bubby, dating class-A asshat Joel, and apparently, pretty dense since she continues to put up with Joel's womanizing ways.

But, when Quinn and Ella are on the phone with each other as Daniel and Gabby, pretenses are dropped, at least on Quinn's part, and he's finally able to unload all the guilt and sadness he still carries around from his best friend's death. Although the guilt-from-a-best-friend's-death story line has been done numerous times, I really enjoyed the slightly different take on this one. The discussion of suicide took the story in a bit of a darker, more serious, direction, but it was handled with care. It didn't take over the story, as these deep elements sometimes seem to do.

The connection and passion between Ella and Quinn helped alleviate some of that seriousness, I think. Books that delve into deep and sensitive subject matter sometimes have this dark pall over them, and even with an HEA, you sometimes just feel sapped of all energy when you reach the end. I didn't feel that way with Before You Break. When Ella and Quinn were together, the tone was lighter. And their sexy times were VERY sexy. I loved every minute of it. So, at the end, I didn't feel like I needed to go drown my sorrows in a tub of Ben & Jerry's. I was happy and satisfied - all good things.

Before You Break is told in dual POV, with Ella and Quinn switching off chapters. We see plenty of Avery and Bennett from book 1 in this series, which is always something I love. I am very much looking forward to following both these couples now through the rest of the series.

In
the stunning conclusion to the wildly popular White Rabbit Chronicles,
Alice "Ali" Bell thinks the worst is behind her. She's ready to take the
next step with boyfriend Cole Holland, the leader of the zombie
slayers…until Anima Industries, the agency controlling the zombies,
launches a sneak attack, killing four of her friends. It's then she
realizes that humans can be more dangerous than monsters…and the worst
has only begun.

As the surviving slayers prepare for war, Ali
discovers she, too, can control the zombies…and she isn't the girl she
thought she was. She's connected to the woman responsible for
killing—and turning—Cole's mother. How can their relationship endure? As
secrets come to light, and more slayers are taken or killed, Ali will
fight harder than ever to bring down Anima—even sacrificing her own life
for those she loves.

"Gavin has started calling you the queen of zombie hearts," Cole said. "And you know what, he's right. It fits. Before you, I wasn't really living. I was existing. Moving from girl to girl. Killing zombies. I was as good as dead, but you brought me back to life. And you are most definitely the queen of my heart."

Things have finally come to a head with Anima, and Cole, Ali and the rest of the slayers and their friends are ready to start kicking ass and taking names. But, Anima doesn't seem to be playing by the unwritten rules of evildom. They're doing unexpected things, and that's making the gang nervous. To make matters even more nuts, Ali has started seeing a new Witness - one she never has before. And when she finds out who she is, it's even more clear that the game is changing in a big way. I had to sit on this book for a bit before I could wrap my head around what to say about it. It's one of those books that puts you into a coma for awhile because of its sheer epicness. So much happens in The Queen of Zombie Hearts - both good, bad and awesome. It starts immediately and doesn't die down until the very last page. It's exactly what you want when you're reading the last book in a series, especially one about zombie slayers. Gena Showalter gives readers everything we want and tempers it with some of what we need. She gives us a happy ending. But, in Cole's words,

"Did everyone get a happily ever after? Sorry, but no. Welcome to life."

You know those books where it just seemed like the author was trying too hard to please everyone? So, all the characters get this sweet ending tied up with a nice bow at the end, and all ride off into the sunset, tra-la-la. BLECH. It might be painful, and it might suck at times, but it's better if the road to the end is full of potholes. It's definitely more interesting, and it absolutely makes the story seem more believable - even one about zombies. The White Rabbit Chronicles has always been about Ali Bell and her search for self. Who is Ali Bell? What makes her tick? Admittedly, Cole Holland became a large part of who Ali is as we moved through her story. And, that's okay. Because, Cole makes her better. Together, they're amazing. They're dynamic and sexy, and completely dysfunctional at times. In a word - they're PERFECT. They've been through a lot together, and it really seems like they are finally rock solid.

"You're my girl, Ali. That's never going to change. There's no one else I've ever wanted more, no one else I ever will. You're it for me, and if it takes the rest of my life, I'm going to prove it to you."I believed him. "I'm looking forward to that."

Because I wasn't constantly worrying about their relationship this time around, my brain and fragile emotions were better able to focus on the evil empire, Anima, and what their dastardly end game was. And, we finally find out. And, it all has everything to do with who Ali Bell REALLY is and what she can do. Seriously, the twists and turns in The Queen of Zombie Hearts surprised me. I loved all the new stuff that came up. Usually, final books are all about tying up the loose ends. It was awesome that Gena Showalter decided to not only introduce some crazy awesome plot twists, but tons of brand new characters too. It gave the book a completely fresh feeling, which was great. And, yet, all the loose ends are still taken care of. See - we can have our cake and eat it too. After all the explosions and fight scenes and zombie ashing and after all the kisses and tears and snarky comments we've finally reached the end. I'm kinda holding out for a spin-off series. There's several potential characters that would be perfect for that. (*raising eyebrows* Gena?) Until then, I'm content to re-read some of my favorite moments. And, pretty much all of them involve Cole.

"You know I think you hung the moon, right?""Right. Just like I know you held the ladder and looked up my skirt."

September 25, 2014

I am SO excited to introduce you to a brand new series coming soon from my friend Cora Carmack! You guys - she's going... PARANORMAL. The first book in her new Muse series is called INSPIRE. And, today, I get to show you the cover...

Inspire (Muse #1), by Cora Carmack
To Be Published December 15, 2014Publisher: self-publishedGenre: new adult paranormal romance

(Synopsis) Kalliope lives with
one purpose.

To inspire.

As an immortal muse, she doesn’t have any other choice. It’s part of how she
was made. Musicians, artists, actors—they use her to advance their art, and she
uses them to survive. She moves from one artist to the next, never staying long
enough to get attached. But all she wants is a different life— a normal one.
She’s spent thousands of years living lie after lie, and now she’s ready for
something real.

Sweet, sexy, and steady, Wilder Bell feels more real than anything else in her
long existence. And most importantly… he’s not an artist. He doesn’t want her
for her ability. But she can’t turn off the way she influences people, not even
to save a man she might love. Because in small doses, she can help make
something beautiful, but her ability has just as much capacity to destroy as it
does to create. The longer she stays, the more obsessed Wilder will become. It’s
happened before, and it never turns out well for the mortal.

Her presence may inspire genius.

But it breeds madness, too.

About the Author

Cora
Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something
characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like
working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like
teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in
the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a
boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT,
was a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

September 24, 2014

I'm excited to help kick off the release of the third book in JA Huss' Social Media series, BLOCK. As part of this blitz, organized by Xpresso Book Tours, JA Huss is giving away signed copies of the three books out in the series so far - Follow, Like and Block. And, read on to the next post for my review of Block.

Block (Social Media #3), by J.A. Huss
Published September 24, 2014Publisher: self-publishedGenre: adult contemporary romanceTo Buy:Amazon(From Goodreads)Grace @FilthyBlueBird@VaughnAsher #YouAreCaredFor So the movie star says. But his idea of cared for isn't the same as mine. Obviously a #Douche.MovieStar @VaughnAsher@FilthyBlueBird #BehindTheScenesIsMyScene The Blue Bird has trust issues. And tantrum issues. And commitment issues.

Grace @FilthyBlueBird@VaughnAsher #SaidTheKettleToThePot

MovieStar @VaughnAsher@FilthyBlueBird #YouAreMine and I won't let you forget it.

Why
is he so damn sexy? How will I ever get out from under Asher's thumb if
I can't stop thinking about his tongue on my buttons?
#HottiesNeedToPlayFair

Want to see the cover for book #4, STATUS?

I. Can't. WAIT.

About the Author

J. A. Huss likes to write new adult books that make you
think and keep you guessing. Her favorite genre to read is space opera,
but since practically no one reads those books, she writes new adult
science fiction, paranormal romance, contemporary romance, urban
fantasy, and books about Junco (who refuses to be saddled with a
label).

She has an undergraduate degree in horses, (yes,
really–Thank you, Colorado State University) and a master’s degree in
forensic toxicology from the University of Florida. She used to have a
job driving around Colorado doing pretty much nothing but shooting the
breeze with farmers, but now she just writes, runs the New Adult
Addiction and Clean Teen Reads Book Blogs, and runs an online science
classroom for homeschoolers.

Why is he so damn sexy? How will I ever get out from under Asher's thumb if I can't stop thinking about his tongue on my buttons? #HottiesNeedToPlayFair

For the love of doughnuts - JA Huss, what are you DOING TO ME?! Block toyed with my fragile emotions in ways I didn't expect. I spent equal amounts of time smiling and sneering, and more than my fair share of time crying - like, actual tears-running-down-my-face-and-my-husband-giving-me-strange-looks CRYING - while reading the third installment in the brilliant Ms. Huss' Social Media novella series.

"I have so much inside me, Vaughn. So many bad things inside me that I'm trying to move past. And I think you're right. I'm too afraid of failure to allow anything good to happen to me."

We were lulled into a false sense of security at the end of Like when Vaughn and Grace seemed to be in a good place. But, with the dawn comes reality after the good sex high has worn off, and now Grace is again having reservations. A few texts from Vaughn, though, and she's back to okay. But, then - radio silence. For two whole weeks. And those weeks change both Vaughn and Grace. Vaughn has time to realize what and who he really wants. Grace has time to realize that she's worth more than a casual dirty screw once a month. And, this time, Grace may have bolstered herself up enough to refuse even her fantasy prince charming.

Those two weeks that Grace and Vaughn spent apart - man, those were absolutely pivotial for this series. The change I saw in Vaughn during that time was unbelievable.What was even better is that, I got the impression that the shift even took HIM by surprise. All of a sudden, the thought that Grace may not want to talk to him again after false media reports surface about him is too much for him to bear. The lengths that this unshakable rock of a man goes to just to TALK to her astounded me. It was the absolute height of romanticism and just plain swooniness.

But, the absolute best part for me was when both Grace and Vaughn dropped all pretenses and got real with each other. I've been waiting for this moment since the first time they met. Vaughn shrugged off his arrogance (well - most of it, anyway) and stopped fronting for the purposes of maintaining his insatiable desire for control. It seems that Vaughn is well aware that he lost control of this situation with Grace a long time ago, and with that realization comes true freedom - the freedom to *gasp* talk about your feelings! Share your dreams! Beg for forgiveness that you know you don't deserve.

"I might not be your prince, but I think you're my princess. I swear, I never knew I was looking for one. I just always knew that the women I was with before didn't mean anything to me. But, Grace, when I was up in that private suite and you were sent away, I realized something. I realized that I like you. A lot. And I don't know what that means or where that leads, but I like you and I want to keep seeing you... I can make you feel all those things you crave, Grace. I know I can."

Grace absolutely killed me. She is so torn up about Vaughn and whether she should be with him or not. The two weeks apart really gutted her. We all could tell in Like that she was already in love with the guy. She feels stupid and betrayed and humiliated. And, when Vaughn tries to convince her otherwise, like every good female, she tries to guard her heart from further pulverization. But, she's also so very sad. She wants desperately to be loved by somebody, but ESPECIALLY by Vaughn Asher. He's her white knight who was supposed to take her away from her tragic life. And, instead, he (allegedly) dumps her without a word and (allegedly) hooks up with someone far prettier than her. She was destroyed and utterly disappointed, and that was so tough to read.

"I deserve that fairy tale ending, Vaughn. I do. You might not think so. You might think I'm just some silly girl who has no right to expect so much from a man. But, I don't care. Maybe that man doesn't exist and maybe I'll spend the rest of my life alone, waiting for my prince. I don't care. I refuse to play this game with you."

In Grace's internal musings, she's made references to a seemingly tragic past. We didn't know any details until Block. Now, we know some, and it's even worse than we all imagined. And, I have a feeling we haven't even scratched the surface. I think Grace's past, and how Vaughn responds to it, will play a big part in the books moving forward.

Unlike the two previous installments, Block did not feature any of Vaughn's sexual proclivities. In fact, he seems intent to show Grace that he is multi-faceted. He shouldn't be judged by what she's seen to date. Backpedal much? Honestly, it was refreshing, this vanilla version of Vaughn. He proves that good sex isn't about using the best toys or whether you have an audience. It's about the feelings behind the act.

"You want to know what everyday sex with me is like? This would be in. Me. You. In bed naked. I don't need the dirty words or the public performances. I don't need to make you submit or humiliate you. I just need you, Grace. That's it."

Block was certainly a roller coaster ride. Things start out good, then they get bad, then things seem to get good again, and at the end... well, it's hard to tell how things stand. I think bad? Again? And, it seems that Vaughn has done something while Grace was drunk that we aren't aware of, and that Vaughn seems to think Grace won't appreciate. I have my suspicions as to what that thing is, but time will tell. In any case, at this halfway point in the Social Media series, it's safe to say I am completely and utterly caught up in the story of these two lost souls.

September 23, 2014

It's finally here!! STAY WITH ME
is out today, and I have all the info about it here, organized by Inkslinger PR. Read on for a swoon-worthy excerpt, and the Stay With Me Trailer! Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a $25 GC to Amazon or Barnes & Noble at the end!

(From Goodreads) At 21, Calla hasn’t done
a lot of things. She’s never been kissed, never seen the ocean, never
gone to an amusement park. But growing up, she witnessed some things no
child ever should. She still carries the physical and emotional scars
of living with a strung-out mother, Mona—secrets she keeps from
everyone, including her close circle of college friends.

But the
safe cocoon Calla has carefully built is shattered when she discovers
her mom has stolen her college money and run up a huge credit card debt
in her name. Now, Calla has to go back to the small town she thought
she'd left behind and clean up her mom’s mess again. Of course, when she
arrives at her mother’s bar, Mona is nowhere to be found. Instead, six
feet of hotness named Jackson James is pouring drinks and keeping the
place humming.

Sexy and intense, Jax is in Calla’s business from
the moment they meet, giving her a job and helping her search for Mona.
And the way he looks at her makes it clear he wants to get horizontal . .
. and maybe something more. Before Calla can let him get close, though,
she’s got to deal with the pain of the past—and some very bad guys out
to mess her up if she doesn’t give them her mom.

Excerpt

As I lay there, trying to swallow a
loud, obnoxious yawn, I remembered something he’d said when we first met, about
life being too short. I imagined he had firsthand experience with shortened
lives while he was serving. That mentality came from experience. I got that
now. Could even understand it, but there was something I didn’t
understand.

“Why?” I asked.

There was a beat. “Why what?”

Jax sounded tired, and I should
shut up or point out that I was now tired and could sleep, so he could leave.
But I didn’t. “Why are you here? You don’t know me and . . .” I trailed off,
because there really wasn’t anything left to say.

A minute went by, and he hadn’t
answered my question, and then I think another minute ticked on, and I was okay
with him not answering because maybe he didn’t even know. Or maybe he was just
bored and that was why he was here.

But then he moved.

Jax pressed against my back, and
the next breath I took got stuck in my throat. My eyes shot open. The sheet and
blanket were between us, but they felt like nothing.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Getting comfortable.” He dropped
an arm over my waist, and my entire body jerked against his. “It’s time to
sleep I think.”

“But—”

“You can’t sleep when you talk,” he
remarked.

“You don’t need to be all up on
me,” I pointed out.

His answering chuckle stirred the
hair along the back of my neck. “Honey, I’m not all up on you.”

I freaking begged to differ on that
point. I started to wiggle away, but the arm around my waist tightened, holding
me in place.

“You’re not going anywhere,” he
announced casually, as if he wasn’t holding me prisoner in the bed.

Okay. The whole prisoner thing
might be melodramatic, but he wasn’t letting me up. Not when he was getting all
kinds of comfy behind me.

Oh my God, this was spooning. Total
spooning. I was spooning with an honorary member of the Hot Guy Brigade. Did I
wake up in a parallel universe?

“Sleep,” he demanded, as if the one
word carried that much power. “Go to sleep, Calla.” This time his voice was
softer, quieter.

“Yeah, it doesn’t work that way,
Jax. You have a nice voice, but it doesn’t hold the power to make me sleep on
your command.”

He chuckled.

I rolled my eyes, but the most
ridiculous thing ever was the fact that after a couple of minutes, my eyes
stayed shut. I . . . I actually settled in against him. With his front pressed
to my back, his long legs cradling mine, and his arm snug around my waist, I
actually did feel safe. More than that, I felt something else—something I
hadn’t felt in years.

I felt cared for . . . cherished.

Which was the epitome of dumb,
because I barely knew him, but feeling that, recognizing what the warm, buzzing
feeling was, I fell right asleep.

Trailer

About the Author

# 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer
lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her
state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time
reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write,
and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class,
where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her
dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction,
fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press,
Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book
Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series
has been optioned for TV.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name
J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

September 22, 2014

I am SO thrilled to be a part of the STAY WITH ME blog tour, organized by Inkslinger PR. I love Jennifer L. Armentrout's Wait For You NA series. I never thought I'd say this, but Stay With Me was absolutely the best one yet. Read on for my review, and stay tuned tomorrow for an excerpt, the trailer and a great giveaway. And, don't forget to pre-order STAY WITH ME. Today's the last day to use your pre-order to gain a special Cam and Avery bonus scene! Visit Jennifer's Web site to learn more!

Stay With Me (Wait For You #3), by Jennifer L. Armentrout
To Be Published September 23, 2014Publisher: William Morrow Format: e-book, provided by the author and Inkslinger PRGenre: new adult contemporary romanceTo Buy:Amazon ** Barnes and Noble ** iTunes ** Kobo ** GooglePlayRating: 5 STARS

(From Goodreads) At 21, Calla hasn’t done
a lot of things. She’s never been kissed, never seen the ocean, never
gone to an amusement park. But growing up, she witnessed some things no
child ever should. She still carries the physical and emotional scars
of living with a strung-out mother, Mona—secrets she keeps from
everyone, including her close circle of college friends.

But the
safe cocoon Calla has carefully built is shattered when she discovers
her mom has stolen her college money and run up a huge credit card debt
in her name. Now, Calla has to go back to the small town she thought
she'd left behind and clean up her mom’s mess again. Of course, when she
arrives at her mother’s bar, Mona is nowhere to be found. Instead, six
feet of hotness named Jackson James is pouring drinks and keeping the
place humming.

Sexy and intense, Jax is in Calla’s business from
the moment they meet, giving her a job and helping her search for Mona.
And the way he looks at her makes it clear he wants to get horizontal . .
. and maybe something more. Before Calla can let him get close, though,
she’s got to deal with the pain of the past—and some very bad guys out
to mess her up if she doesn’t give them her mom.

The unthinkable has happened. I thought no guy in Jennifer L. Armentrout's Wait For You series could top Cam. I mean, Jase came really, really close. But, those Sunday morning eggs of his edged Cam out as top book boyfriend. Until now. Jax... well, this guy is so unbelievably amazing. He did it. He edged Cam out of the top spot.

Calla has forever dubbed herself "Friend of the Hot Guy Brigade." A fire when she was young has left her permanently scarred on much of her upper body, including the left side of her face. At this point, she's just trying to make it through college. When her junkie mom cleans her out, Calla is forced to go back to her hometown to try and get to the bottom of things. While there, she meets Jax who seems unbelievably unconcerned about her appearance. He's also very protective of her, especially when the guys who are after her mom start coming after her.

I've always been a big fan of stories in which the girl is put in some sort of mortal peril and the guy feels the need to take on the alpha male protector role. It's not that I enjoy seeing females reduced to the quintessential damsels in distress. On the contrary - I prefer strong, resilient women who make their own decisions and can stand on their own two feet. But, let's face it. In the face of danger, most people will crumble a bit, and it's always good to have someone there to back you up. Bonus points if that someone is super duper hot and sexy.

Calla is amazing. She's overcome some seriously awful circumstances to remake herself. And, when she's slapped with the unthinkable - $100K in debts she didn't rack up and nowhere to stay - Calla puts on her big girl panties and goes home, which is the last place she wanted to go. Calla made me sad for awhile, because even though she was incredibly strong and super smart, she doesn't see herself that way because of her scars. She's never had a boyfriend, never traveled - never done many things because of her self-consciousness. It's unfortunate that she saw herself that way.

But, Jax saw through all that stuff right from the start. And, this man was so confident and patient, he didn't allow her constant rebuffing to deter him from getting to know her better. It's like, he saw her and immediately decided that she would be his, no matter what she had to say in the matter. I loved that about him. He was not perfect either. He has a past to answer for, and his past comes back to bite him in the ass. He didn't respond how I would've liked him to at first, and when Calla calls him on it, he does own it. But, it didn't stop me from wanting to smack him around a bit.

Jax makes it his personal mission to help Calla start to live like she never has before. He sees that it's her own self-image that is holding her back from doing the things she wants to do. And, he also was smart enough to know that all she really needed was a little bit of a push. He did push her way outside of her comfort zone more than once. It ended up being a growing and learning experience for both of them.

The bad guys after Calla's mom put her in bad situation after bad situation, and Jax is always there to help her out. He's a former soldier, so the role comes naturally for him. His take-charge attitude was what really made me love this guy. He doesn't take no for an answer when it comes to her safety. Instant. SWOON.

Stay With Me is told entirely from Calla's POV. Her relationship with Jax was real and vibrant. This story is hot, hot, hot, too. But, there's sweetness in spades too. Jax takes his time wooing Calla. It was perfectly paced with no lulls in the action at all. We see lots from Cam and Avery and Teresa and Jase too, which I loved so much. Stay With Me was one of the best NA books I've read this year.

So, Calla mentions the Hot Guy Brigade in the beginning of the book. In her words, Cam is the president of the Hot Guy Brigade. Jase is the lieutenant. Ollie was second to the lieutenant, as was Brandon, her secret crush. So, it got me thinking - who would be in my Hot Guy Brigade?

Chris HemsworthPresident, Krista's Hot Guy Brigade

Chris PineLieutenant, Krista's Hot Guy Brigade

Charlie HunnamSecond to the Lieutenant, Krista's Hot Guy Brigade

Who's in YOUR Hot Guy Brigade?

About the Author

# 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer
lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her
state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time
reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write,
and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class,
where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her
dismal grades in math.

Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction,
fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press,
Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book
Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series
has been optioned for TV.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name
J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Tegan
Callahan has sworn off bad boys for good. Growing up on tour with her rock star
brother, she knows first-hand the damage they can do. She’s looking for a nice,
safe, stable guy – until a chance encounter with a devastatingly sexy stranger
makes her question everything she thought she wanted.

A
troubled soul…

Ryland
James arrives in Beachwood Bay on the run from his mistakes. He knows he’s the
last thing Tegan needs, but somehow, he can’t stay away. There’s something
about her fierce beauty that draws him in – and makes him vow to protect her,
whatever the cost.

A
passionate destiny…

Their
bond is undeniable; the stakes, higher than ever. But the past won’t stay gone
forever, and soon, Ryland must make the ultimate choice: will he risk
everything he treasures in the world, or keep Tegan safe – and sacrifice her
love forever?

Melody
Grace is the New York Times bestselling author of the Beachwood Bay series. A
small-town girl turned SoCal beach lover, after spending her life with her nose
in a book, she decided it was time she wrote one herself. She loves steamy
romance novels, happily-ever-afters, and lusting after fictional menfolk. She
is author of USA Today & international bestselling Beachwood Bay
series.